Chapter 99: Tides of Fame and Fortunes

Hehe, that’s on you! No backing out later!

The joke was met with laughter.

Liu Shan and the others joined in the merriment.

“Absolutely not,” someone replied.

After the laughter subsided, Li Jue turned to Xu Hao. “Xiao Xu, if anything happens here, call immediately. This trending topic did us no favors.”

“No problem, Director! The culprit behind the trending topic has been identified, so we should have an answer soon.”

“By the way, Director, I’ve spoken with General Zhu from Mingsha Tourism. He’ll arrange a camel caravan to deliver you to the junction, then you can catch a ride to Mingsha County.”

Xu Hao nodded.

The Ancient Architecture Institute meant a great deal to him; its support was immense. Without it, neither his current status nor the smooth development of the guesthouses would have been possible.

“We’re all on the same team—no need for formalities,” he remarked.

“Of course!”

After seeing off Li Jue and the others, Xu Hao returned to his room at 10:30.

“Time to shoot. Today we’re filming the first scene: Guo Furong causing chaos in Qixia Town.”

Glancing at the shooting schedule and script on the table, Xu Hao began mapping out his next moves.

All the locations for filming ‘Wulin Legend’ had been prearranged, so even without tourist interference, the pace wouldn’t lag—after all, the vision was already clear in his mind.

As for a launch ceremony, Xu Hao had no plans to hold one.

Nothing else meant it.

After all, Haofang Culture was a new company and most leads were extras. A launch event would only invite criticism about how anyone could act in a TV show.

He himself didn’t mind, but it might dampen the actors’ morale.

Snap back to reality.

Xu Hao grabbed the schedule and script and left the room.

It must be said,

trending topics are a double-edged sword—they can kill in one stroke or launch you into fame. Today’s tourist turnout far exceeded yesterday’s; most seemed to have come from nearby regions.

Perhaps because Xu Hao had hardly livestreamed since the completion of Tengwang Pavilion, or because Zhu Qiang now handled all public announcements and interviews, his presence at the guesthouses was waning. Only his most loyal fans still greeted him.

Yet, the proportion of loyal fans among tourists kept decreasing. At this rate, Mingsha Tourism would soon dominate—its official Weibo account was nearing a million followers, already surpassing Xu Hao’s KuaiDou short-video account.

Moreover, the followers on Mingsha Tourism’s Weibo were potential visitors, far more valuable than those on short-video platforms.

With that in mind,

Xu Hao felt content and had no plans to resume livestreaming.

For one, filming wasn’t meant for live broadcasts—if people watched in real time, the anticipation would vanish. Besides, his many official roles—especially with the Ancient Architecture Institute and in Mingsha County—made livestreaming unwise.

Continuing would only give opportunists ammunition to exploit his credentials. Even the current project’s director was credited as Fang Hou, because someone didn’t want him to succeed!

For instance, the involved media—this setback would surely sour their attitude towards Mingsha County. Not that he feared trouble, but the guesthouses had far too many tasks ahead. Out of thirty-six oases, only two had been developed (one still in its infancy). There was simply no time to tussle with media chasing headlines. Stepping away from livestreaming was the best move. From now on, all matters on the desert plot would be handed over to Mingsha Tourism, which would even train a dedicated host for promotions.

The livestreaming scene was evolving rapidly; every day, thousands of hosts quit while even more joined—the pace was staggering!

Not to mention, thanks to tourists’ videos and constant feeds, the two wild chickens in Hu Yang Forest had become internet celebrities. Go three to five months without streaming, and even the biggest host would be forgotten, struggling to reclaim their peak.

Ding, ring, ring. Just as Xu Hao stepped onto the wooden boardwalk, his phone suddenly rang.

“Haozi, when are you coming over? We’re all set here!”

The call was from Fang Hou.

“We’re almost there! Tell the actors to prepare in advance.”

“Got it! All departments, take note.”

Time flew by, and before long, half a month had passed in Haishi.

At the Tianchen Culture Headquarters, Yang Yuan lounged in his office chair, reading a news flash on the computer: “Sun Da, editor-in-chief of Nanjiang News, has been criminally prosecuted for inciting trouble and spreading false rumors. Mingsha Tourism has been hit with a 300 million civil compensation, while another thirty media outlets involved collectively had to pay 230 million.”

Smack! After a long read, Yang Yuan, clearly displeased, shut down his computer.

“Five hundred million in compensation for just one video is inhumane! And that trending topic only brought more attention to Mingsha County,” he fumed.

Yang Yuan glanced at Liu Qing across from him.

At that moment, his emotions were a tangled mix.

Envy, jealousy, even hatred—he felt them all!

What does 500 million even mean? Even though Tianchen Culture was massive in the entertainment industry, its annual net profit hardly reached that figure. Without one or two smash hits each year, not only would making money be unlikely, but losses were entirely possible.

Take the current project, ‘The Culinary Detective,’ for example: the director and two A-list stars alone fetched over 100 million in fees, and with the expenses of the Ancient Building Courtyard and other projects, the total cost could approach 300 million.

That’s it.

In the end, how much profit they’d actually make remained uncertain.

Meanwhile, the opposition managed to secure 500 million without lifting a finger—it was downright shameless.

At one point, he even wondered why no media had tried the same with Ning’an and Tianchen Culture, letting Tianchen Culture have a taste of effortless windfalls.

“General Yang, I’ve heard that the lawyer hired by Mingsha Tourism for this case is incredible. During negotiations with the media, he almost drove several media heads insane under pressure—they ended up paying compensation as demanded! In fact, Nanjiang News’ overall scale is only about 300 million at best; otherwise, it wouldn’t have ended up this way. Rumor has it, the lawyer initially asked for 2 billion!”

Of course, Mingsha Tourism’s smooth compensation was due in large part to the strong backing from the local government in Mingsha County—this was the first time he’d seen such force from a poor county.

Liu Qing wore a look of helpless resignation.

In just a few short months since Mingsha Tourism was registered, their operations had ballooned in scale. With this compensation, they could no longer be considered a small company.

They had even become a force capable of going head-to-head with Ning’an Cultural Tourism.

If only they hadn’t targeted Xu Hao from the start, none of this might have happened.

“By the way, we haven’t heard from Xu Hao in a long while. What is he up to these days?”

After a bout of frustration, Yang Yuan couldn’t help but ask.

“General Yang, I’m not sure about Xu Hao. Ever since Tengwang Pavilion was built, he’s hardly livestreamed—his popularity can’t match Zhang Chi anymore. But Mingsha Tourism’s recent moves have definitely attracted a lot of tourist attention!”

Liu Qing paused before speaking.

“What moves?”

Yang Yuan furrowed his brow.

“They’ve turned the desert into something resembling a golf course!”